Fatal Bus Crash
June 18, 2007
Police said a truck had slammed into its rear without braking, sending the bus tumbling 10 meters (32.8 feet) down a slope towards the Saale River.
Helicopters flew the injured to hospitals in a five-hour rescue operation near the town of Könnern, 150 kilometers (99 miles) southwest of Berlin.
A truck-crane raised the bus, which had come to rest on its roof, to ensure that no one was underneath.
Passengers' possessions, ranging from suitcases to a plastic container of home-made cookies, packed as a money-saving snack for the long journey, lay scattered in the grass.
The driver, who survived the crash and was being treated for shock, said he had been halted at the tail-end of a traffic jam when the bus was suddenly rammed from behind.
Enroute to Dresden
Forty-nine adults from the western German town of Hopsten had set out earlier on their annual holiday jaunt.
The victims were members of a farmers' organization, which had organized a six-day outing for them to Dresden, a city famous for its architectural treasures.
"I know just every one of them personally," said Johannes Kramer, a town official of Hopsten, a small medieval town where the trip was popular among widows and other people who had retired from farming.
Worst crash in years
The A14 autobahn was blocked in both directions for hours after the early afternoon accident.
Helicopters and police helped evacuate the seriously injured to hospitals in the cities of Magdeburg and Dessau while paramedics treated the lightly injured at the scene.
Rescuers from nearby rural towns, such as a young man from a volunteer fire brigade, admitted they were shattered by the task. "I hope I never see something like that again as long as I live," he said.
It was the worst coach accident in Germany since a bus ripped itself open on a highway safety barrier in September 1992 in the Black Forest, killing 21.